An intriguing book, “The History and Arts of the Dominatrix” by Anne O Nomis, is due for release in December:

“…Nomis traces artifacts depicting a Dominatrix Goddess, and clay tablets in cuneiform writing which record gender transformation ceremonies, punishment, pain and ecstasy. The Dominatrix rituals were conducted in honour of the powerful Goddess Inanna in Mesopotamia, who had a mysterious ‘keppu’ implement used in her game of domination. In the later Mediterranean, young men would be whipped before the Goddess Artemis Orthia in Sparta, and initiation rites of the ‘Mysteries’ at Pompeii include a Dominatrix priestess figure with a whip.

In the 17th – 19th Centuries, ‘forbidden books’ reveal information on the women who ran flagellation establishments in England. From early flagellation brothel ‘Whipstresses’, to famous courtesan ‘Birch Disciplinarians’ and to the ‘Governesses’ of the golden age, the occupational craft was to develop with elaborate tools and equipment, paired with refined skills and knowledge. The female flagellants were savvy erotic entrepreneurs of their era, whose clientele included the elite of British aristocracy, politicians, and yes – even royalty!

The bizarre fetish style and ‘Dominatrix’ title came about in the 20th Century, an era of discreet whispers and advertising consisting of little cards in tobacconist windows in Soho. With pseudonymous names and disappearing acts common, this book traces some of the Dominatrices whose stiletto footprints would otherwise have been lost to the sands of time. From black-and-white and sepia images, dog-eared early colour photographs, polaroids, and fetish magazine scans of long-lost images, the story recovers some of the Dominatrices who worked in the ‘bizarre underground’ of New York, London, The Hague and the Herbertstrasse. Lastly, the book addresses what kind of a woman becomes a Dominatrix, how she practices her craft, and discusses her ‘Seven Realm Arts’…”

More about the book and its author here.